CL3 builds a 24-story sculptural art gallery in central hong kong

the term ‘form follows function’ is greatly challenged in the design of commercial buildings in modern cities as the function of its tenants becomes generic. ‘h queen’s’ gallery center in hong kong designed by CL3 is unique in breaking this taboo by thinking of its occupant early on — situated in the historic city center, this 700 square meter site is divided into art galleries and restaurants. the provision of terraces for the restaurants results in the sculptural form of the building.

photo by nirut benjabanpot unless stated otherwise

CL3’s project is a commercial building that combines two distinct components — art galleries and F&B — to form a unique lifestyle building. 125 meters tall, the building is clad with low-E-e glass achieving leed gold status. the exterior is triple glazed with zero UV penetration.

the main problem in loading large artworks into the building is solved by mounting a crane on the roof. artworks are hoisted from the street through a 3-meter x 4.5-meter openable curtain wall panel directly into the building, capable of lifting a weight up to 1.25 ton. the building’s openable façade allows passive energy use and flexibility for tenants who want natural ventilation.

photo by henderson real estate agency limited

project info:

name: h queen’s

architects: cl3 architects limited

completion: 11 september 2017

client:henderson real estate agency limited

gross floor area: 6,921 sqm

site area: 461 sqm

photography: nirut benjabanpot

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